Thursday, June 21, 2012


Are You Ready to Take the Challenge?      

How you ever been to a cornfield maze?  You have to maneuver through and successfully come out the other end but along the way there are many walls that you cannot go through.  You may feel like you will never find your way out.  When you compare the two pictures above, which view would you rather have before you enter the maze?  The first picture.  It does not give you much to work with or the second picture.  It helps you to see the whole view.  You can look at the obstacles and figure your way around the barriers.  Ann Thorpe’s book The Design Atlas for Sustainability explains that there are many barriers that designers face in pursuing sustainable design today but she gives you some strategies to address these issues.  In other words, how to find you way out of the maze. 

This is exactly what I have been trying to do since I started my journey to learn more about sustainability.  My family has two businesses and I have been trying to think about ways I can apply what I’ve learned to them.  One major factor that keeps standing out to me is the bottom line.   How will it affect the profits because I know that will be the first question that my dad will ask me when I propose he change his business philosophy.  Thorpe states that the private sector market is governed by the “bottom-line” of profits. Designers have had an big part in influencing this expansion.  Once mass production was available, designers were changing their product more often in hopes of increasing their sales. Consumers no longer just buy what they need but they buy what they desire.  This has created a society that operates on debt.  Instead of saving the money and buying what we need, we extend ourselves to buy what we want.  My dad calls this instant gratification.  Here is where the problem lies.  The economy must expand or we will not have the means to pay back our debt.  This is the driving force for production design in the private sector (private individuals and companies).  A private company measures its success on how many products it has sold.  To be successful they must sale more.  An example of this is a clothing designer will have new styles for their line all four seasons.  As a whole, this group does not allow human value to interfere with the economic bottom line.  The challenge is getting the private sector to put a value on the environment. There are still obstacles that exist in this group even if a company makes the decision to become sustainable.  It is unlikely that they will share their knowledge with their competitors because they would not want to give the competition an edge.  I was able to find an example of a company that has put a value on the environment and the needs of others.  It is called FEED.  Co-Founded by Lauren Bush, daughter-in-law of Ralph Lauren.  FEEDs mission is to create good products that help FEED the world.  They sale FEED bags, bears, t-shirts, and other accessories.  They have a set donation built into the cost of each product.  Since FEED was founded in 2007, they have given over 6 million dollars and 60 million meals. Watch this short video that tells about their philanthropy efforts.   
There are two more sectors we must look at when talking about sustainability and the economy.  They are the public and non-profit sectors.  Both of these groups have tried to put a dollar value on the environment.  The pubic sector (government) has tried to accomplish this through regulations.  The governmental agency that regulates the carbon footprint of businesses on the environment is the Environmental Protection Agency also known as the EPA.  Some obstacles that sustainability faces in this sector is not enough inspectors to make sure that companies are following these guidelines.  Also, not every nation has regulations and many companies will do business in these countries for a lower cost.  Non-profit organizations (neither businesses nor government), the third sector has grown dramatically over the past 50 years.  This alone is a sign that the other two sectors, private and public, are not doing their part in addressing society’s concerns.  Designers in this group can work on sustainability issues that are doing things for a good cause. They may concentrate on research and share the information.  As I stated earlier, a corporation may not want to share its knowledge, where a non-profit wants to distribute this information. Another advantage with this sector is the training and education about sustainability issues.  The Excel program offered by Ethical Fashion Forum, a non-profit organization, aims to offer training and resources to support fashion businesses. It puts the spotlight on the businesses that are pioneering in ethical practices alongside great products- and encourage the best new creative minds to tackle sustainability challenges.  Another nonprofit making a difference in our industry is Common Threadz.  This program aims to help orphans and vulnerable children in developing nations to reach their full potential. They accomplish this through the sells of T-shirts, bracelets and shoes.  This companies bottom line is profit but designing for a cause.  One of the projects they fund is purchasing school uniforms.  Children in Africa have been refused schooling for not being able to purchase a uniform. Common Threadz is helping to combat this issue.




Culture is another critical feature in understanding sustainability.  Cultural sustainability is to create and maintain general human well-being.  Design tries to satisfy people needs.  With over 6 billion people living on our planet, it is hard to figure out what is “well-being”. Although we are distinctive, we all have needs.  Methods that satisfy our needs vary widely. Our society has evolved in the last century to having their needs met externally rather than internally.  Can design help people meet there needs more successfully?   Thorpe tells us there are four themes when exploring well being.  First theme is communication.  In the past, we would have communicated through letter writing, church functions or live performance.  This type of communication required some type of personal interaction.  Today we seem to have one-way communication through the media.  This provides little interaction with each other.  Second, we like to acquire more things than we have ever before. Our great grandparents bought material possession out of need not desire.  The third obstacle that sustainability faces today is time.   I want it NOW!   It is all about me and not the community.  


I believe this video is a good illustration of how we are today.  Fourth, We like to live in cities today compared to living in the country enjoying the peacefulness of our surroundings.  So, this is how I picture us today.  I see a TV advertised on TV, that’s kind of funny in its self.  I want it now, but I don’t just want one, which would suffice my needs, I want one for every room in the house.  I bring them home.  Then my family, four of us, all sit in separate rooms watching our favorite shows. No interaction with each other. I sit in my house watching TV all day and do not go outside to enjoy any of the beauty that God created for me.  Are my needs really being met?  I do have a TV for every room in my house, but is that really what I want?  Is that what makes me happy?  I believe that’s what everyone is telling me will make me happy, but yet I’m not.  What can designers do to turns us back to satisfying our needs internally?  Are there ways that designers can get the consumer to be part of the process? Open design is a process in which the user gets involved with the designer.  Getwear is a online website that allow you to be the designer and create the jeans that you want.
If the consumer is involved in the process, maybe the product will mean more to them and they will not want to discard it so quickly.  Another strategy that Thorpe recommends for facing today’s obstacles is cooked verse raw.  A perfect example of this is the Do It Yourself phenomenal that is taking place today.  You can walk into any Lowe’s or Home Depot and find many hands on projects.  Recently, I had the pleasure of doing one of these hands on projects myself.  I had a floor in our home that needed to be sealed.  I could have called someone to do it for me, but I decided that I could do this myself.  It was not hard and every time I look at that floor, I feel a bit of accomplishment that I did it.  I believe this is what Thorpe is referring to your needs being fulfilled internally. 

This week, I was discussing this issue, sustainability, with my dad and he made the comment that has taken us about 2000 years to get to this state we are in.  It will not be fix quickly.  I informed him that it has not taken us this long.  That is has only been the past century that we really have taken a turn for the worst.  As we learned in the beginning of The Atlas it was the Industrial Revolution’s mass production that starting the process of using our resources faster than we could replenish them.  You can see how Thorpe’s book outlines for us ways that we can combat some of the barriers that designers face.  Are you ready to take on the challenge?  I am.








18 comments:

  1. Carly,

    Great post! Been communicating with the wrong group so it's nice to finally be able to read your blog. I loved the Willy Wonka video and agree completely with our generation wanting things now. I've been guilty of wanting something because everyone else had one. Do you think we can ever change this mindset? Is it all based on how we are brought up or how the American culture is today? Sustainability has been talked about throughout my education but only in my science courses. Do you think it should be required for students to take sustainability courses in middle or high school?

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    1. Natalie,

      I'm glad you enjoyed reading it. It's like what we learned the first week from Armstrong & LeHew, it has to be a paradigm shift. I believe it can be done. Who would have thought that restaurants would prohibit smoking but it takes people willing to take on the issue and get the word out. I do believe it is our culture. We like to do what the media tells us to do. We are like sheep going to the slaughter. I liked what Thorpe said about how we need to change from meeting our need externally to meeting them internally. The more we acquire doesn't always make us happier. If we can translate this to the next generation, maybe they will be the ones that really make a difference. You may be on to something by offering classes to middle and high school students. I know my high school is offering more career and technology classes. I think a sustainability class would be a perfect fit. Do you know of any high schools that offering anything like this?

      Carly

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    2. Carly,

      The only class I personally had that focused on sustainability was environmental science my junior year. It was an AP course and a lot of kids were not that interested in it. I've never heard of a course that is specific in environmental sustainability I think it would be a great idea to have it in business course work. Clubs such as FFA and DECA provide ample opportunities to learn about sustainability and implement those ideas in the competitions! What do you think?

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    3. Natalie,

      Cara suggested that maybe offering classes at the elementary age. I found a school in Spring Texas that is doing this very thing. The school was designed so the kids could learn through the web- based learning tool. The students are able to interact with the building system. There is an above ground cistern and water trough that is used to teach math and science concepts through real- world experiences. There is butterfly garden along a walking trail.The building was created to use natural sunlight to light their rooms allowing for the lights to be off 75% of the time. I would have love to go to this school. They have made learning about sustainability issues fun and at the same time they are helping the environment. How do you think we can get more school to turn their campuses into hand on learning?

      Carly

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  2. Carly,

    Fantastic blog!! I love that you want the consumer's involved because I do too. I went to the Getwear website and am fascinated but what the company is. You can even choose the fly of your jeans! I think that in order to get awareness of what's going on behind the scenes we must be transparent and let the consumer be involved. I also love that you're willing to tackle home projects instead of hiring. So much of that stuff is so easy and not worth paying the hundreds of dollars. Recently, my landlord told me that our garbage disposal would cost $700-$800 to fix. I called my parents and they said they could put a new one in for 60 bucks. See, there are ways to make things cheaper! I also agree with you and Natalie that a lot of our culture is want, want, want. That's the reason we have a "fast fashion" movement. I recently read an article that said window displays, that display new merchandise, are one of the ways that gets consumers into the store but it also is the apart of the reasoning for fast fashion. What if we recycled clothes from the same season but changed the window design more often? Or what if stores offered basics all season but instead of putting a whole line out at once, they space it out? They can even keep the earlier models in store but it would allow for something "new and fun" to be presented throughout the season. Can you think of any other ideas?

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    1. Cara,

      I think you have a great idea. I think also if designers make clothes that are more classic, there would be less of a need to change your closet. This will take a change in consumer behavior, which we learned about in our first week from Armstrong and LeHew. I believe that is at the at the heart of the problem. Do you think we can change the buying behavior any time soon and how do you think we can achieve this?

      Carly

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    2. I would LOVE to see an increase in classic styles. They are more sustainable and it's my style!! Can't go wrong with having good basics!! Another thing great about classic styles is that you wont have to recycle them as often and therefore not putting back harmful materials back into the spheres we talked about week two as fast as we are right now. Of course, classic style designers also need to figure out ways to make their product more sustainable. I think that although it will take time, the buying behavior will change. It is up to designers to slow it down, I suggested on one blog that maybe instead of introducing a line all at once, if we spread it out through the season. That way we can have updated window displays and new arrivals throughout the season but its still from one line. What are some ways you can think of?

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    3. Cara,

      I think we are going to have to get the companies to put a value on the environment like we learned this week in The Design Atlas. As long as the bottom line is profit, I do not think you will see to many companies producing fewer lines.

      Carly

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  3. Hi, Carly;
    Your blog is especially comprehensive this week. I particularly like the maze analogy. This is so true! (though the aerial view can be overwhelming to most stuck in the cornrows). When you contrast the approaches to sustainable design (economic and cultural) that you learned about this week, which do you think will gain the greatest traction the soonest among what types of consumers groups?

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    1. Dr. Armstrong,

      According to my home, I would say women would be the first group to get on board. Everywhere I go now, my mom is looking to see if it is sustainable or not. I haven't seen my dad doing that at all. Also, my mom is who does most of the shopping at our house and teaches us what to buy. I also did some research on women consumers vs. men consumers. In the article Are Women the Key to Sustainable Development written by Candice Stevens, it says the lack of progress on gender equality may be at the heart of the failure to advance on sustainable development. If women were more in the decision-making roles, we could be moving faster and more assuredly towards sustainability. This is the group that I would target.

      Carly

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    2. That is a very interesting argument! A study of matriarchal society may be in order . . .

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    3. Dr. Armstrong,

      I did a little research and found an article about Modern Matriarchal Studies. What I found interesting was it wasn't about either gender being dominate. It was about equal respect and they depend on each other. They are societies with complementary equality, where great care is take to provide a balance. This is something to work towards.

      Carly

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    4. Sounds very interesting . . . and sustainable!

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  4. Carly,

    Great Blog! I agree that if consumers were involved with the designing process of a product they would definitely appreciate it a lot more. I think the "do it yourself" projects are especially a fun and creative way to get consumers involved in building things for themselves, this way they will also feel a sense of accomplishment within themselves too. How do you think apparel companies can implement "do it yourself" projects for consumers to make right at home? I know they have "design it yourself" clothing that consumers can do online. Do you think consumers are buying into this idea?

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    1. Nicole,

      Good question. A designer could have a DIY kit that you could purchase with all the items you would need. After you purchase the kit, you take it home to assemble. This could cut down on cost but also get the consumer involved. I believe that Hobby Lobby and Michael's does this with jewelry. Do you think this type of DIY project would work?

      Carly

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    2. Carly,

      Oh yes I think it would definitely work! I think maybe a little more advertisment and more companies getting involved with this idea will get consumers interested very quick. This could very well have a huge impact on the enviornment in such a positive way.

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  5. Carly,
    The FEED video you posted is very interesting. When the video was over, another FEED video popped up that you could watch so I decided to watch it. It said that for every FEED bag sold, they feed one child in school for one year. The fact that purchasing only one bag can feed a child for a whole year is amazing! I went onto their actual website and found that you can purchase bags called "FEED 100" or "FEED 10". The number at the end represents how many meals they provide to the children. You also mentioned that non-profit organizations have been growing over the past 50 years. Do you think this is because people are supporting these more than the public and private sectors? If yes, then why?

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    1. Rachel,

      The private sector was not interested in philanthropic practices in the past. It took non profit organizations to meet these needs of our society. I believe that the private sector is becoming more involved in this type of practice more today. Target gives about 5% of it's pre tax operating profit each year. They gave over $150 million dollars per year. What are good ways you think we can get the private sector involved in charitable donations?

      Carly

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